400 million legal dispute

Court hearing ends with a reprimand for Lively & Baldoni

In the 400-million-dollar legal dispute between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, both parties met in court for the first time.(Bild: AP)

In the 400 million dollar legal dispute between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, both parties have met in court for the first time. At the hearing with the lawyers in New York, Judge Lewis Liman criticized the public handling of the dispute. 

The legal proceedings are based on Lively's accusations that Baldoni sexually harassed her on the film set of "Just One More Time". The accused responded to this with a defamation suit.

Judge threatens to postpone trial
At the court hearing with lawyers from both sides on Monday, Judge Liman criticized the public approach of both sides, according to US media reports. This offers the public "a lot to feast their eyes on". If the mutual attacks in the media and on the internet do not stop, he will move the start of the trial forward, the judge said. The trial is actually due to start in March next year.

Blake Lively is said to have complained about Justin Baldoni's behavior on the set of "Just One More Time".(Bild: ©Sony Pictures / Everett Collection)

The legal dispute goes back to the filming of the movie "Just One More Time", which is about domestic violence. Baldoni was the director and male lead, Lively played the female lead.

Lawsuit against producer too 
After filming, Lively complained about Baldoni's behavior on set and filed a lawsuit. Among other things, she accused him of constantly talking about his sex life. Baldoni had also tried to include sex scenes in the film that she had not agreed to beforehand.

Producer Jamey Heath had also watched her change her clothes, although she had asked him to turn around. The world-famous actress from "Gossip Girl" also filed a lawsuit against him.

Baldoni demands 400 million dollars
Baldoni then sued his colleague and her husband, Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds, for defamation. He is demanding at least 400 million dollars (388 million euros) in damages from the celebrity couple. The dispute is also being fought out on a massive public scale by both sides.

Immediately before the court hearing on Monday, Baldoni's team released a website showing emails and chat messages between the two sides. Documents relating to the case could also be viewed. According to US media reports, Judge Liman criticized Baldoni for creating the website and stated that this approach violated the judicial process.

After the court hearing, the lawyers for both parties were optimistic. "We're very pleased with how all the issues were handled," Baldoni's lawyer, Bryan Freedman, told members of the press outside the courthouse. "We will move as quickly as possible to prove our innocence." Lively's attorney, Michael Gottlieb, also said he was "very happy with how the hearing went." However, he did not give any details.